Professor Sam Lucas PhD, BSc, BPhEd (hons), FECSS

Fellow of the European College of Sport Science (FECSS)
PGCert in Academic Practice (Associate), University of Birmingham, United Kingdom, 2015
PhD in Exercise Physiology, University of Otago, New Zealand, 2008
Bachelor of Science (Physiology), University of Otago, New Zealand, 2002
Bachelor of Physical Education (Hons, 1^st class), University of Otago, New Zealand, 2001
Certificate in Outdoor Recreation Leadership and Management, Tai Poutini Polytechnic, Greymouth, New Zealand, 1996
Certificate in Outdoor Recreation, Tai Poutini Polytechnic, Greymouth, New Zealand, 1995

Professor Lucas completed his PhD in 2008 at the University of Otago, New Zealand. His thesis investigated the physiological and cognitive consequences of prolonged exercise. He then had 5 years post-doctoral training focused primarily around techniques to measure cerebral perfusion and understanding the integrative mechanisms that regulate cerebral blood flow.

Prof Lucas joined SportExR as a Lecturer in March 2013 to establish his own research programme focused on brain vascular health. He was promoted to full Professor in 2024.

Professor Lucas contributes to the BSc Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences and MSci Physiotherapy degree programmes, teaching fundamental and applied physiology principles in lecture-, laboratory- and field-based settings. Prof. Lucas will also teach on the new MSc in Clinical Exercise Physiology (starting in September 2025), for which he has led the working group to establish this Masters degree programme at the University of Birmingham.

In addition, he supervises 3rd year and taught Masters dissertation projects each year within both the SEHS and Physiotherapy programmes (BSc and MSc/MSci).

Details of modules currently teaching:

2nd year: Applied Exercise Physiology
3rd year: Performing in Extreme Environments (Module lead)

Professor Lucas has supervised numerous research Masters and PhD students in New Zealand, Canada and the UK, and Postdoctoral Fellows at UoB. As both a primary and co-supervisor Prof Lucas has 16 PhD and 13 MSc (research) completions, and currently co/supervises 10 PhD and 4 MSc (research) students. The details of his graduate student supervision and the subjects/areas of work are listed below: 

Postdoctoral Fellows

2023-        Dr Jun Cao, University of Birmingham, UK (PI and line manager - mTBI Predict)

2021-24     Dr Kelsey Joyce, University of Birmingham, UK

2022-23     Dr Samuel Weaver, University of Birmingham, UK (PI and line manager - mTBI Predict)

2021-23     Dr Foyzul Rahman, University of Birmingham, UK (co-I supervision; PI: Segaert (FAB study))

2018-19    Dr Claire Burley, University of Birmingham, UK (co-PI supervision; Mullinger) 

Research Assistants

2024 -       Georgia Philpot, University of Birmingham, UK (co-PI)

2023 -       Asha Strom, University of Birmingham, UK (PI and line manager - mTBI Predict)

2022-         Alex Friend, University of Birmingham, UK (co-I; PI: Rendeiro (‘Running Blue’ study))

2023-24     Sophie Prosser, University of Birmingham, UK (PI and line manager - mTBI Predict)

2021-24     Jack Feron, University of Birmingham, UK (co-PI supervision; Segaert (FAB study))

PhD students

University of Birmingham, UK

2023 -      Dave Sheldon: Real-world application of high-altitude training. (co-PI)

2023 -      Joseph Jenkins: The effects of prolonged sitting and activity breaks on vascular function, glucose and insulin responses in people with Type 1 Diabetes. (co-supervisor)

2022 -      Jasmine Yeh: ‘Brain food’: The direct versus indirect mechanisms of action of cocoa flavonoids in the human brain. (co-supervisor)

2022-       Phoebe Cox: Effect of exercise interval intensity and immune cell responses. (co-supervisor)

2021 -      Jack Feron: Exercise and Cerebral Haemodynamics for Brain Health in Older Adults (co-PI)

2021 -      Dan Hodgkiss: Effects of a non-invasive neuroprosthesis on functional capacity in individuals with spinal cord injury. (co-supervisor)

2021 -      Dr Andreas Yiangou: Mechanisms and therapeutics for headache in Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension. (co-supervisor)

2018-      Alessio Daniele (part time): The impact of aerobic fitness on the acute vascular effects of cocoa flavanols’ during uninterrupted sitting (co-supervisor).

2018-      Rachel Gifford (part time): Effect of heat acclimation on intestinal function and immune responses in males and females during prolonged exercise in hot conditions (co-PI).

2018-      Ben Price (part time): Heat thermotherapy and cardiovascular and cardiometabolic health (co-PI).

2019-23  Guy Perkins: Application and development of functional near infrared spectroscopy and high density diffuse optical tomography to assess traumatic brain injury (co-supervisor).

2017-22  Samuel Weaver: In vitro and in vivo vascular response to exercise-induced changes in blood flow. (PI)

2016-22  Beth Skinner (part time): The effect of female sex hormones on cerebrovascular function (co-PI).

2018-21  Kelsey Joyce: Urinary alpha-1 acid glycoprotein and its utilisation for the evaluation of proteinuria mechanisms (PI).

2017-21  Nathalie Kirby: Heat acclimation protocols and performance outcomes in high-level athletes. (co-PI).

2016-20  Mohammed Rupawala: Developing the physical and computational sciences of multimodal imaging (optical and electrophysiological) for improving diagnostic accuracy in disorders of consciousness (co-supervisor).

2014-20  Neil Dallaway: Mental Fatigue and Exercise Performance (co-supervisor).

2014-18  Claire Burley: A multimodal investigation of brain health: Cerebral blood flow, cognitive performance and quality of life (PI).

2014-17  Michael Clancy: Application and development of high density functional near infrared spectroscopy for traumatic brain injury (co-supervisor).

2014-18 Shoug Al Humoud: Effect of Sleep Quality on Cardiopulmonary Status (co-supervisor).

University of Otago, NZ

2016-19   Leena Shoemaker: The cerebrovascular role of cognition during physiological stress (co-supervisor).

2011-18    Carl Bradford: Acute and adaptive responses to endurance swimming in warm water (co-supervisor).

2012-17   Ashley Akerman: Cardiovascular adaptations to exercise, heat and dehydration (co-supervisor).

2010-17   Rob Creasy (part time): The stress and strain of triathlon racing in different thermal environments (co-supervisor).

2010-16   Kate Thomas (part time): Stress Conditioning for Peripheral Arterial Disease (co-supervisor).

2011-14    Blake Perry: The Effect of Static and Dynamic Changes in Blood Pressure on Brain Blood Flow in Healthy Humans (co-PI).

2008-11   Nia Lewis: Dr Lewis conducted four (of five) of her studies while on a 6-month exchange at the University of Otago Liverpool John Moores University, UK (co-supervisor).

MSc (Research)

University of Birmingham, UK

2023-       Jacob Tennant (part time): The power of water: Optimizing the use of water and exercise for vascular health. (PI)

2023-       Katriona Brown: Validity and reproducibility of Hb mass measures to predict the high-altitude training response. (co-PI)

2023-       Georgia Philpot: Effect of Exercise and Water Immersion on Cardiovascular Health. (co-supervisor)

2022-       Amelia Quirk (part-time): Determining the role of female sex hormones in the neurotrophic factor response to sprint-based exercise. (PI)

2022-24   Abigail Rex: Profiling the heat acclimation decay time course from 3 weeks of post-exercise sauna bathing. (co-supervisor)

2021-24   Melissa Brown: Effects of acute exercise and heat stress on fluid biomarkers of kidney function.(co-supervisor)

2021-24   Laura McTernan: Determining the effect of female sex hormones on the neurotrophic factor response to exercise. (PI)

2020-22  Tarondeep Nijjar: Investigating immune cell function responses to different exercise strategies (co-supervisor)

2019-22  Ellon Hart: The mechanisms of acute kidney strain in response to prolonged exercise in different environmental conditions (co-PI).

2019-22   Jack Feron: The effects of nutritional supplementation with nicotinamide riboside and pterostilbene on acute vascular and metabolic responses during exercise and recovery (co-PI).

2018-20   Amy Booth: The effect of nicotinamide riboside and pterostilbene on exercise performance at altitude (PI).

2018-20   James Gibbon: Post exercise Sauna bathing is an effective method of heat acclimating middle distance and endurance runners (co-supervisor).

2018-20   Chris Bradley: The impact of two different dosing courses of acetazolamide on ventilatory sensitivity to hypoxia in a young and old cohort (co-supervisor).

2017-19   Rhodri Furlong: Examining the effects of moderate intensity exercise and high intensity interval training on cerebral blood flow and neurovascular signalling factors during cycling (PI).

2017-19   Rosie Pritchard: Effects of short term nutraceutical ingestion on cerebral blood flow in the elderly and young adults (co-PI).

2017-19   Gabriella Imi: Characterising cerebral haemodynamic oscillations during running (co-PI).

2017-19   Hannah Caldwell: Influence of core body temperature on cerebral blood flow during exercise. Member of Supervisory Committee, University of British Columbia – Okanagan, Canada.

University of Otago, NZ

2013-18   Matthew Shallcrass (part time): The role of brain blood flow in thermoregulatory and respiratory control during exercise (co-PI).

2011-13    Monique Francois: Exercise Snacking before meals as a novel approach to glycaemic control in pre diabetes (co-supervisor).

2010-11    Hayley Guiney: Aerobic fitness, physical activity, and brain function in healthy young adults (co-supervisor).

2009-11    Matthew Graham: Blood pressure and plasma volume responses during recovery: Effect of exercise intensity and exercise limb (co-supervisor). 

Professor Lucas is an integrative physiologist whose primary research focus is on brain vascular health. He has a specific interest in how cerebral blood flow is regulated with ageing and during stress (esp. high altitude, thermal, ortho/hydrostatic, exercise, cognitive and trauma/concussion), and how these impact on function (e.g., neurophysiological and psychological/behavioural responses).

Professor Lucas has more than 20 years of research experience and has developed a broad range of research skills and expertise that underpins his inter- and multidisciplinary approach to research. To date, he has published 155 peer-reviewed publications, 3 book chapters and 227 conference abstracts. His published work is in leading journals within the field, including papers that have been widely cited (e.g., 16 publications with >100 citations (2 with >500 and 5 more with 200+) and another 17 with >50 citations). As Principal or co-Investigator, Prof. Lucas has been awarded >£17 million worth of research funding across a range of sources, including research councils, charities, and sporting, government and commercial bodies. Prof Lucas is a principal investigator within the Centre of Human Brain Health (CHBH) at the University and serves on its management/strategy committee, is the academic director of the Environmental Chamber Facility located within SportExR, and serves on the management committee of the newly established Centre for Movement and Wellbeing.

Since arriving at the University of Birmingham in 2013, Prof Lucas has established inter- and multidisciplinary collaborations with clinicians, optical bioengineers/computer scientists, MR physicists/researchers and other physiologists that have resulted in a series of studies and publications that include development and testing of new neuroimaging technology, validation and comparison of different neuroimaging methodologies and analysis approaches, as well as examining brain vascular responses to novel exercise, cognitive and environmental stress. Work within his laboratory focuses on three interlinking themes:

1. Investigating age- and disease/trauma-related changes to the regulation of brain perfusion and the functional consequences;
2. Multimodal assessment of brain health;
3. Exercise strategies and complementary approaches (e.g., environmental stress, nutrition) that optimise health (esp. brain health). 

In addition to this primary research focus, Professor Lucas is involved in numerous projects investigating various aspects of health and performance. He collaborates widely with colleagues in the School, across campus and has a number of long-standing, successful national and international collaborations. 

Examples of current and recent projects include:

• Fitness, Ageing and Bilingualism: The FAB Project
• mTBI Predict
• Head Impact and Concussion Monitoring in grass-roots and amateur athletes (Mochi)
• See media articles relating to this work